it felt, too much over-burdened, so the trouble came bubbling up from her heart and was told on Sir Philip’s shoulder.
He listened very gravely, just stroking her hair. 'Yes—yes—' he said softly; and then: 'go on, Stephen.' And when she had finished he was silent for some moments, while he went on stroking her hair. Then he said: 'I think I understand, Stephen—this thing seems more dreadful than anything else that has ever happened, more utterly dreadful—but you'll find that it will pass and be completely forgotten—you must try to believe me, Stephen. And now I'm going to treat you like a boy, and a boy must always be brave, remember. I'm not going to pretend as though you were a coward; why should I when I know that you're brave? I’m going to send Collins away to-morrow; do you understand, Stephen? I shall send her away. I shan't be unkind, but she'll go away to-morrow, and meanwhile I don't want you to see her again. You'll miss her at first, that will only be natural, but in time you'll find that you'll forget all about her; this trouble will just seem like nothing at all. I am telling you the truth, dear, I swear it. If you need me, remember that I'm always near you—you can come to my study whenever you like. You can talk to me about it whenever you're unhappy, and you want a companion to talk to.' He paused, then finished rather abruptly: 'Don't worry your mother, just come to me, Stephen.'
And Stephen, still catching her breath, looked straight at him. She nodded, and Sir Philip saw his own mournful eyes gazing back from his daughter's tear-stained face. But her lips set more firmly, and the cleft in her chin grew more marked with a new, childish will to courage.
Bending down, he kissed her in absolute silence—it was like the scaling of a sorrowful pact.
6
Anna, who had been out at the time of the disaster, returned to find her husband waiting for her in the hall.
'Stephen's been naughty, she's up in the nursery; she's had one of her fits of temper,' he remarked.
In spite of the fact that he had obviously been waiting to intercept Anna, he now spoke quite lightly. Collins and the footman must go, he told her. As for Stephen, he had had a long talk with her already—
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